I Wish I Could Save You
by darrenchris
Summary: Peeta has been captured by President Snow, and Katniss begs Gale to go to the Capitol to bring him back. But when both boys end up captured and forced into Snow's prostitution, they need to rely on each other to make it out alive. GalexPeeta
1. Chapter 1

_**Hey guys! This is my first published non-Glee fanfic, so I'm seeing how it goes :) I was inspired to write this as I was reading lists of odd pairings for the Hunger Games, and I thought this one might be kinda interesting to write due to the character dynamics. This is guyxguy: so don't like, don't read. Rated M for sexual content and some violence/language.**_

**_Obviously I can't give away everything about the plot, but I can tell you that that plot line will pick up more as the chapters go on. Gale will come in during the next chapter, I promise, however the true pairing won't come until a little later._**

**_Reviews = love! And suggestions are always welcome :) I'm hoping this fanfic will have a little of everything, from funny to serious to fluffy and so on. So please feel free to comment with any ideas you might have, and I will definitely consider them! :)_**

**_Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing. Well, except for my Peeta poster... but sadly, it is just a poster. Boo._**

**_Long author's note is long. On with the story! And thanks for reading! :)_**

Peeta Mellark was lost. In his mind, in his own body. How on earth could someone feel so disconnected from themselves? Just a year ago, he had been simply the baker's son. Hell, just a couple of weeks ago he had been enjoying his Victory Tour as one of the winners of the 74th Hunger games. What had changed? How had this happened? Unfortunately, Peeta knew. And no matter how hard he tried, he would never forget…

* * *

"Peeta! Peeta, no! Bring him back! Peeta!"

Peeta could hear Katniss screaming, yelling for the Peacekeepers to let him go as they dragged him towards the waiting hovercraft. He struggled with all his might, trying to break free of their death grip on his arms. He looked up in time to see Katniss trying to run towards him, only to be stopped by a swarm of Peacekeepers descending on her.

"Katniss, no! I'll be okay, I promise! Just stay safe, don't get into troub-!" Peeta was cut off as he was shoved into the hovercraft, stars dancing across his vision as his head collided against the back wall with a thud.

As he was being chained into one of the hovercraft's seats, Peeta thought back on the events that had just happened. He and Katniss had just finished their first speeches on their Victory Tour, but the reception in District 11 had not been what they had anticipated. Instead of bringing the district peace of mind like they had intended, he and Katniss had sparked a rebellion in the agricultural district. The two had been dragged off the stage- Katniss by Haymitch and Effie in an attempt to shield her from most of the trauma, and Peeta by the Peacekeepers.

Why the Peacemakers had taken him and not Katniss was a mystery to Peeta, but he was glad that for now, she was safe with their mentor. Yet despite the relief at Katniss' safety, Peeta had to admit to himself that he was scared. Why did they want him? What would they do to him if they didn't get what they wanted? Peeta shivered at the idea of being put through the various tortures that he had heard about from childhood stories. All he could do was try to keep his breathing even and focus on staying as calm as possible.

After all, who knew how long the calm before the storm would last?

* * *

Peeta woke with a start, his chest heaving and his body covered in sweat. He put a hand to his forehead, trying desperately to massage out the horrible nightmare he just had about… that day… The day he lost everything.

He groaned as he sat up, his sore body rebelling against the movement as he looked at the clock. 4:32 AM.

_Great. _Peeta thought. _Only two more hours to sleep and I'm gonna spend it trying to erase old memories…_

He snuggled back down under the scratchy, standard-issue blankets on his bed, trying in vain to coax himself back into sleep. But unfortunately, his body just wouldn't relax now that the soreness was settling in fully. Images flashed across his mind from the night before, images he wished dearly would just go away.

_Peeta's hips hurt with how hard this man was gripping them, but he fought hard to keep from crying out in pain. President Snow would not like it if he heard his most popular 'item' was weak. So Peeta sucked it up and let his body be abused, just like he had every other night._

"_N-ngh, yes! Scream for me, my victor!"_

_Internally, Peeta rolled his eyes, wincing as the man's demand was punctuated by a particularly hard thrust. He faked a low moan and screamed, letting out his inner frustration at the situation._

Peeta squeezed his eyes shut as the memory overcame him, his body starting to shake weakly.

_The man was close, Peeta could feel it. He just prayed that it would be over soon so he could try to nurse what little pride he had left._

"_Say it, victor, say it!"_

_There was a sharp intake of breath as Peeta heard the man's demand, and he let out a small groan which only served to get him a rough slap on the face. Why the citizens of the Capitol had such a fascination with titles and names during sex, he would never know. Between all of his clients calling him their "victor" and the various names they forced him to call them, he was starting to become a little weirded out. But despite his own thoughts on the matter, he had to do what he was told, or he would be punished. Severely._

"_Y-yes, ungh, m… master…."_

It was then that Peeta realized he was digging his nails into his arm so hard he thought he might bleed. He hated being degraded like that, forced to make himself feel dirtier than he already was.

He sighed, wiping a stray tear away before turning over to try to go to sleep. He may as well try to get some sleep at least, because it was useless to worry about everything else now. There was nothing he could do about it.

President Snow had won. He had taken away Peeta's freedom, his family, his only friend, and even his body. After being dragged away from Katniss in District 11, the dictator had wanted to prove that his power could not be undermined, and Peeta had been turned into one of President Snow's sick victor prostitutes.

Two weeks ago, he had been Peeta Mellark, victor of the 74th Hunger games.

Now, he was Peeta Mellark, the Capitol's premier whore for hire.

And as he managed to force himself into a fitful sleep, one last thought crossed his mind- _Someone… Please, anyone… Save me…_


	2. Chapter 2

**Oh my gosh, I never expected this to get so many follows and reviews! Honestly I thought it might turn out to be a dud. But since people asked for it, here it is!**

**Reviews and ideas are always greatly appreciated!**

**This chapter will have mostly Katniss and Gale in it in order to move the story along. Sorry fellow Peeta lovers. :P**

**Unneeded disclaimer: I don't own the Hunger Games. Darn.**

* * *

"The Capitol wants him… why not let them have him?"

Katniss whirled around, fire in her eyes. "What did you just say? How dare you say that!"

Gale put his hands up defensively, afraid she might actually hit something in her angered state. "Hey now! I was just saying that they took him for a reason, why not let them keep him for a little longer and see what they're planning?"

Katniss was seething, her eyes practically boring holes into Gale's head. "He is my friend. I don't care about what the Capitol is planning, I just want him back. He went through hell and back to keep me alive in the arena, and I won't abandon him now."

Gale inwardly winced, seeing that Katniss obviously cared more for Peeta than she did for him. Why couldn't he just accept the fact that Katniss would never want him? Wasn't there anything he could do to prove to Katniss that she meant the world to him? If only-

"Gale? Are you even listing to me?"

Gale shook his head to clear it, trying to refocus his attention back onto what Katniss was saying. "S-sorry, what?"

Katniss huffed, then looked down at her shoes before repeating herself. "I want to go try to rescue him."

Gale's eyes went wide, and he started to protest when Katniss quickly cut him off. "Now I know you think it's a bad idea, but look at it this way. I talked to Haymitch already, and he said that there's a resistance. People just like us, who want the Capitol to fall and pay for all that they've done. Haymitch said that the resistance has just been waiting for the right moment to attack- what if this is it? What if we can join the resistance, infiltrate the Capitol and take them down, all while saving Peeta before they can do anything too horrible to him?"

Gale could feel Katniss watching him, waiting for a response. He didn't like the idea, not one bit. And it wasn't him being upset that she and Peeta would be reunited, no. He wanted Katniss to be happy at any cost, even if it meant giving her to another man. What he was most concerned about was Katniss herself. Yesterday, they hadn't even known that this 'resistance' existed, and now Katniss wanted to run off and join it? Did she not realize that she had already beaten the odds once by making it out of that damned arena alive, and now she was going to tempt fate again? There was only so many times a person could escape death.

"… I don't think it's a good idea."

Katniss groaned, beating her fist against the table. "Damn it, Gale, why can't you just agree with me? This resistance is a good idea! We can fix so many things all at once! No more Capitol! No more Hunger Games! Peeta would be back! How is any of that bad?"

Gale bit his tongue, refraining from shouting back exactly what was bad about the entire thing. He knew that yelling and reason wasn't the way to get to Katniss. So he had to try the next best thing- guilt.

"Please… Don't go Katniss. I lost you once… Don't make me lose you again." He looked up into Katniss' eyes, willing her not to go through with her crazy plan.

He could see that Katniss was shaken, quite taken aback by his request. It was as if she hadn't expected him to care for her so much. It looked as if she were actually considering it, and there was a long silence between the two friends as Gale waited for Katniss to respond.

"… Someone has to go, Gale. Someone has to at least try to save him."

Gale groaned, letting his head fall into his hand. She was never going to see reason, was she?

"But," She said, making him look back up. "It isn't necessarily me that has to go. Someone else can go in my place."

The relief on Gale's face was obvious, and he smiled as he moved in to hug her. But Katniss stopped him by placing her hand on his chest, looking at him with seriousness in her eyes.

"But you know how hard it will be for me to just sit back and let someone else take control. I won't do it unless someone I trust goes. That's the only way I can be sure a full effort is being put towards the mission. If I can't find anyone like that, then I'm going myself."

Gale could see the slight smirk behind Katniss' gaze, because she thought that there was absolutely no way Gale could find someone she trusted enough to go in her place. His hands were tied, and she knew it. Unless… "Then I'll go."

Katniss physically stepped back with the shock of what her best friend had just said. "… You'll go?"

Gale sighed, knowing he couldn't take it back now. "Yes, I'll go. No one else will do it, and even if they offered, you wouldn't trust them enough to take your place. You do trust me, don't you?"

Katniss rolled her eyes. "Of course I trust you. It's just-"

"Then let me go. Let me do this." He took Katniss' hand in his own. "For you."

Katniss looked up at Gale with wide, pleading eyes, trying to make sure that he actually meant what he was offering. When she seemed positive that he would not take back his former offer, she closed her eyes and leaned in against Gale's chest.

"Thank you…"

Gale held her close, his arm wrapping around her protectively. Inside, his heart was breaking. He was about to go on an insane mission for the girl he loved- to bring back the boy she loved. But he needed to do this, to make Katniss happy. It was all he really lived for anymore.

"Gale?"

He looked down into Katniss' eyes, waiting.

"Please… Bring him home. Safe. Promise me."

At that moment, Gale felt his heart completely shatter. But despite his feelings, he would do this. For her.

"I promise."

* * *

**Woah! That turned out waaaaaay longer than I thought. Sorry for any mistakes, but I was so excited to post this that I forgot to send it to my beta reader first. :P**

**Anyways, I hope you guys liked it! Like I said, this chapter had all Katniss and Gale in order to move the plot of the story along, but I promise that Peeta will come back in the next chapter! And for those of you who are waiting for the smut, don't worry, it'll show up later. ;)**

**Don't forget to review! Because if you do, I'll love you. Haha.**

**Oh! And for literarylesbian37, I also wanted to leave this chapter as just Katniss and Gale for you! I try to keep my readers happy, so even though it'll end up being a PettaxGale pic, I wanted to give you a little somethin' somethin' for being awesome, reviewing, and choosing to stick with me. :)**

**Love y'all to bits! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey again! :)**

**This chapter is a tad bit longer than the first two, but that just means there's more awesomeness this time! :D Haha, I'm just kidding, but seriously, all of your guys' reviews and favorites have really made me feel awesome, which has pushed me to keep putting my best efforts into this fic. Thanks for all of it! **

**I think all I can really say now is enjoy, and be sure to review if you have any questions, comments, or ideas! PMs are cool too. **

**Obvious disclaimer is obvious: I don't own Hunger Games. If I did, why would I be posting this on instead of making megabucks on a spinoff series? Exactly. So just enjoy. :)**

* * *

Gale jumped back as a pod exploded down a nearby alley, cursing softly under his breath. These 'rebels' needed to be more careful, or else they would all end up dead. It was unbelievable, the lack of training given to all of these recruits that were to be in charge of potentially bringing down the capitol. He had more skill than half of the troops here, and the only practice he had ever had was shooting squirrels and deer in the forest behind District Twelve with Katniss!

Katniss… The only reason why Gale was in the Capitol in the first place, risking his life. As he moved out of his hiding place to bolt down the now abandoned alley, he replayed Katniss' words once again in his head.

"_Please… Bring him home. Safe. Promise me."_

And he had promised. He had promised to bring back someone she loved. Someone _other_ than him. Gale had to blink in order to keep from shedding a tear. He had made a promise, and no matter how much it hurt, he would have to fulfill that promise. For Katniss.

"Augh!"

Gale was thrown back onto his side, stars dancing across his vision as another pod exploded not far from where he was. He had been too preoccupied with thoughts of Katniss to pay attention to where he had been going, causing him to run straight into the line of fire of a pod. He lifted his head, groaning, unsure of what terror he would see coming from the pod.

The distinct hum and faint buzzing sound should have alerted him to the contents of the pod sooner. As soon as the recognition of the sound registered in his brain, he cursed.

"Tracker jackers."

Gale scrambled up from his curled position on the ground, breaking into a sprint. He knew he couldn't outrun the tracker jackers completely, but maybe if he ran fast enough, he could escape the worst of their wrath.

"Nghh!"

He gripped his left elbow tightly. One sting.

He ran even faster, ducking in and out of alley ways, trying desperately to escape.

Gale stumbled, a searing pain flaming through his ankle. Two stings.

He pushed through the pain, repeating his promise to Katniss over and over in his head, using it to fuel him in his efforts. He had to get away, he had to. But despite his speed, more pain was to come.

His lower back. Three stings. His wrist. Four stings. His neck. Five stings. His knee, his shoulder, his thigh, his cheek. Six, seven, eight, nine.

Before Gale knew it, he stumbled and fell, collapsing to the ground in a heap.

He was going to die, and he wasn't going to be able to keep his promise to Katniss.

"_Please… Bring him home. Safe. Promise me."_

"I'm… s-so sorry…. Katniss…."

Gale blacked out, the tracker jackers retreating after their job well done.

* * *

Peeta woke from his fitful sleep to the sound of hushed, forceful voices and the rustling of clothes down the hall from his cell. He laid as still as possible while straining to hear what the voices were saying. From what he could discern, it sounded like two peacekeepers were arguing over something.

"I don't like this. If he's one of those rebel scum, why don't we just let him die?"

"Because the boss says so. Apparently he thinks we can use this guy to get to _her_."

The way the second peacekeeper had said the word led Peeta to believe that the 'her' could be none other than Katniss. But then who was this 'guy' that they had managed to get their hands on?

"She's such a wild card, how can we be sure she'll come for him? If he's as important to her as the boss says, then why wasn't she with him?"

"Maybe she was, and she just got away when the tracker jackers showed up, hoping to get to him later."

"Well whatever the case, I guess it's a good thing he got to him in time to treat the venom. Now he'll be alive for whatever torture the boss has for him."

Peeta heard them drag what must be the guy's body into the cell next to him, his mind going into overdrive when they shut the cell and began walking away.

He had a few details to go off of; first, that his new neighbor was male. Secondly, that he had been attacked by tracker jackers in the Capitol, and was saved by order of President Snow. And thirdly, that this guy must have some big connection to Katniss in order to have been worth saving.

In all honesty, it didn't take Peeta long at all to guess who it might be. But his brain refused to accept the idea that perhaps the last person on earth who was capable of protecting Katniss was stuck in the cell beside him.

After a few minutes of denying the identity of his neighbor, Peeta heard a faint rustling and the tell-tale creak of a cot in the cell next to him. Hesitantly, he sat up, about to confirm his worst fears.

"… Gale?"

There was a deafening silence before Peeta heard the one voice he had dreaded he would hear.

"… Peeta?"

* * *

Gale shifted as his mind awoke from a deep fog he assumed had been caused by the tracker jacker venom. His body was stiff and his muscles were sore, but despite all of that, Gale was surprised that he was even alive. He had been stung numerous times, which meant that the only way he survived was with the intervention and help of the Capitol. He opened his eyes slowly, finding himself in a fortified cell made of thick cement walls on all sides but one, which was made of iron bars that opened like a gate.

Gale groaned inwardly, shifting and attempting to sit up slowly, causing the cot under him to creak softly. Not a second after he had finished sitting up, he heard a faint voice come from the cell next to his.

"… Gale?"

Gale couldn't believe it. That voice… that voice belonged to none other than Peeta Mellark, the guy he had been searching for this whole time. The whole reason why he was here, in the Capitol's clutches. He almost couldn't believe it, and his voice shook slightly when he answered back.

"… Peeta?"

He heard the rustling of blankets and the squeak of a cot through the thin walls, followed by soft footsteps approaching the wall.

"How… How did they get you?"

Gale assumed that Peeta was kneeling next to the wall, making it easier for them to talk quieter yet still be heard.

"I was actually here to come find you… Katniss asked me to do it."

"… Katniss… asked you to come find me?"

"Yes."

"But… she's not here, right? She didn't get captured too?"

Gale took a moment to answer. "No. She's not here. She's with Haymitch and everyone else still. She wanted to come, but I offered to go instead so she wouldn't get hurt."

He could hear Peeta breathe a tiny sigh of relief, then cleared his throat.

"Well, um… I'm… sorry that you're in here… because of me." He heard Peeta say softly.

Gale nodded to himself, then responded simply with, "I did it for her."

They sat for the rest of the night in silence, because with that said, there wasn't really anything left for them to say.

* * *

**Well, there it is. I feel a little weird about the ending of this chapter… But I just couldn't bring myself to take it any farther with this. I felt like Gale wouldn't really be in the mood to be too talkative, having just been captured and revived and all, so I just let it stay as is for now. Obviously, both boys will be talking more about everything in the next chapter.**

**Thanks so much for all of the reviews and follows! :) You guys rock so much. At first I wasn't sure if I'd even get one good review or follow on this story, and thought I'd maybe have to abandon it after the first chapter. But you guys have kept me going! So I am being completely truthful when I say that this is entirely all for you guys, my amazing followers and reviewers. :)**


	4. Author's Note

**AUTHOR'S NOTE:**

_Hello everyone!_

_I am so sorry to all of my followers… I have been so busy, and life has just hit me HARD. I've been writing little bits every day, so I'm hoping that I will update not only this story, but my other stories soon. Right when I figured it was safe to start writing regularly again, I got bombarded with so many requests I kind of got overwhelmed. Nevertheless, as I said, I am really hoping to update soon. I just wanted to post this author's note to let everyone know that I AM still alive and I DO plan on continuing this story._

_Originally, I thought for sure this story was going to die. But with all of the great reviews I've been getting, and the follows, I just have to continue it. And I will…. Soon! I hope._

_Your guys' reviews are what keep me writing! So thank you so much for everyone who has taken the time to comment and keep me inspired. =)_

_Lots and lots of love,_

_darrenchris_


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